Washington,
DC (4/10/98)- A new guidebook from the National Academy ofSciences
(NAS) may help teachers introduce the concepts of evolution, particularly
if they are reluctant to teach the topic because of pressures from special-interest
groups.
Studies by the NAS and others indicate that many public school students
receive little or no exposure to the theory of evolution. This comes at
a time when some people are advocating that creationism be taught in public
schools, ins spite of the Supreme Court ruled in 1987 that creationism
cannot be mandated in public education.
The new NAS guidebook, Teaching About Evolution and the Nature of
Science, attempts to transcend the debate and focus attention on effective
instruction. The book provides tools to help integrate lessons about the
scientific theory with basic biology for grades K-12.
"The widespread misunderstandings about evolution are of great concern
to the scientific community and the Academy," said Bruce Alberts, NAS president
and one of the book's authors. "Evolution is the central organizing principle
that biologists use to understand the world. If we want our children to
have a good grasp of science, we need to help teachers, parents, school
administrators, and policy-makers understand both evolution and the nature
of science. They also must recognize that many scientists are religious
people, and that religion and science represent different approaches to
understanding the human condition that are not incompatible with each other."
The new book was a collaborative effort by a group of prominent scientists
and educators with extensive experience in education and research on evolution.
The authors note that teaching evolution is essential for explaining some
of the most fundamental concepts of science. Like all scientific theories,
evolution explains natural phenomena by building logically on observations
that can be tested and analyzed. The book:
-
summarizes the massive amount of scientific evidence in support of evolution
and suggests effective ways of teaching this information
-
explains the nature of science and how it differs from other ways of knowing
about the natural world
-
provides eight sample activities that teachers can use to develop students'
understanding of evolution and scientific inquiry
-
answers some of the most frequently asked questions about the scientific,
legal, and educational issues surrounding the teaching of evolution.
"Biology simply cannot be taught well without covering evolution," said
Donald Kennedy, a co-author of the guidebook and Bing Professor of Environmental
Studies, Stanford University, Stanford, Calif. "Students who understand
the process of evolutionary change are able to grasp its vital practical
consequences, such as how bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics. A
failure to teach effectively about evolution will rob students of a precious
opportunity -- to understand how life on Earth has developed and to appreciate
their own place in the world."
Rather than attempt to refute the ideas of those who oppose the teaching
of evolution, the new book emphasizes that most religious denominations
in the United States do not view evolution as being at odds with their
understanding of human origins. The idea that the entire universe was created
all at once about 10,000 years ago -- an idea inherent in "creation science"
-- is not supported by scientific data.
The book responds to the charge from those opposing the teaching of
evolution that it is "just a theory, not a fact," noting that scientists
do not use the word "theory" to describe an unsubstantiated idea. In science,
theories are explanations based on a large body of established facts. The
debate about evolution in the scientific community is focused on the details
of how evolution occurs, not whether it occurs, the publication says. The
book stresses the consensus among nearly all scientists that biological
evolution is the most sound theory to explain the diversity of life.
The new publication is also designed to dovetail with the National Science
Education Standards -- voluntary guidelines introduced three years ago
by the National Research Council to ensure that all students achieve scientific
literacy through improving what is taught, how it is taught, and how students
are assessed. The science standards stress the importance of evolution
because understanding the theory is essential to mastering basic biology
and learning how science works.
Copies of Teaching About Evolution and the Nature of Science
are available from the National AcademyPress (1-800-624-6242). The cost
of the report is $19.95plus shipping charges of $4.00 for a single copy.
Discounts are available for bulk orders.The complete guidebook is also
available online (see below).
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